The Basement Sanctity
by NavyStrong42099
Summary: Over the years, Gibbs's basement has become a sanctuary for every member of the NCIS team, and it could definitely tell a lot of stories. A series of one-shots based off prompts given about any character, situation, or season.
1. Stop Making Excuses

**Author's Note:**

**Hey everybody! So this is my first NCIS fan fiction! I'm a huge fan of the show, and actually have written about three NCIS: LA fan fics so far. This is a series of one shots so please send me prompts and I will most certainly write it. My penname, NavyStrong42099 is dedicated to my brother. Enjoy!**

**-C**

**Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or any of its characters. Disclaimer applies to all future chapters.**

It was any perfectly normal Friday night.

In the early Winter days, night was settling over the city of Washington D.C., casting it in a smoky gloom that was lit up by the building's lights. The air was nipping, car horns honking, and people were milling about thankful that the week was coming to an end at last. Really, it was like any other Friday night.

Except it wasn't.

For the entire population of the nation's capital and the inhabitants of all its suburbs, Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo only cared about one person. And she was halfway across the world desperate to start over. So perhaps this wasn't like any other normal Friday night. Because if Ziva were still state-side, they would be having dinner or watching a movie together.

Instead, Tony found himself on his way to a familiar location, a home away from home. He knew the route like the back of his hand because really, any member of the Major Case Response Team who _didn't _find the basement of Leroy Jethro Gibbs to be a sanctuary was- well, not part of that team.

_Silence of the Lambs_. That was the movie they would have been watching tonight. Tony just had that feeling.

He pulled up, parked the car, and approached the door. Tony was about to knock, fist hovering over the wood when he thought better of it and just let himself in. The agent was immediately greeted by the warmer air and the dull glow of the kitchen light. Not bothering to look for the team leader upstairs, he instantly headed towards the basement entrance and began walking down the steps. The familiar creak followed with every twitch of motion.

Tony inhaled the familiar sawdust smell and heard the rhythm of the boat Gibbs was sanding come to a halt.

"About time you showed up," was the greeting.

Typical.

"Yeah well, I was just on my way home when I realized I needed to borrow your tool set. Still doing some repair work after my apartment got impaled by bullets and I lost mine," Tony rambled, leaning against the railing.

Gibbs chuckled sarcastically. He emptied two glasses of their various contents and poured a little bourbon into each. The senior agent approached Tony and handed him a glass, for which he only got a silent nod of thanks.

Tony stared into the amber surface of the liquid, as if looking for the courage to speak up. He sighed and began, "I'm not really here about your tool kit."

Gibbs took a sip of the alcoholic drink before answering, "well, I know that, DiNozzo. I thought by now you'd stop needing excuses."

"Yeah…me too," Tony trailed off, but his head was in a different place.

"Why are you here?" Gibbs deadpanned.

The ex-Baltimore cop finally made eye-contact with his surrogate father. "Ziva."

Gibbs exhaled deeply, waiting for him to continue.

"It's been a month and a half. Don't you think she should have called or at least e-mailed? Let us know she's okay?"

"She's trying to find herself, DiNozzo. It doesn't take one night. Or a month."

"But does it take that much to just pick up the phone and let us know she's alright?" Tony's voice broke with emotion. Every night he dreamt of how he had to turn away from his best friend- and maybe something more- and reluctantly get on that flight back home. Ever since the departure, he really didn't feel like he was home, actually. Like he had said. Hardest 180 of his life.

What an understatement.

"One of these days she might."

"Yeah," he echoed distantly. "She might."

They finished their bourbon in silence. Gibbs was a man of few words- a functional mute. And Tony was didn't really feel like saying anything else. He simply wasn't prepared for the wall of emotion that decided to blow up in his face once he spoke aloud about Ziva's absence.

Finally, Tony broke the silence, "I should go. Goldfish to feed, you know how it is."

He set his empty glass on the table next to the stairs. Before he made it halfway up, Gibbs caught his attention once more.

"DiNozzo."

"Yeah, boss?" He asked, stopping in his tracks.

"Stop looking for excuses."

Tony managed a small smirk before doing a mock salute, "will do."

He made his way back through Gibbs's house and out the front door. Once again, the Friday night air hit him again. He wondered what Ziva was doing right now. Sleeping? Or would she be getting up early for a run? Maybe a walk through the olive tree grove since she was working to repent?

Tony wasn't sure what she was doing right now. But on the Friday night, where he wasn't going to be watching _Silence of the Lambs _with Ziva, he was going to stop making excuses and figure out what he was going to say exactly what he had been meaning to say the next time she called.


	2. Waiting

**Author's Note:**

**Thanks so much for all of the response! I really appreciate it and hope you enjoy this next one!**

-C

_Prompt from bookdiva: McGee randomly dropping in on Tony one night and clumsily trying to hide that's checking up on him._

NCIS Special Agent Timothy McGee had been unsure of himself his whole life. It didn't matter that he graduated near the top of his class in high school or went to MIT. It didn't even matter that he was working for one of the most renown federal agencies in the United States. Confidence was a trait he knew he lacked.

Working under Gibbs has changed that a little. Especially when it was thought that he had shot an unarmed cop, his boss taught him to stand up for his beliefs and to assert himself. The irony that Gibbs did more for building his character than his own father ever did wasn't loss on the special agent. He was more comfortable around his family at NCIS than the biological one.

So yes, Special Agent Timothy McGee knew he was without confidence. By why the hell was he so unsure about coming to Tony's apartment tonight? Before he could convince himself that he was doing something wrong, Tim knocked at the door.

He heard a shuffling inside the flat until finally the senior agent answered the door. Tony was clad in sweats and an Ohio State University t-shirt. He was currently folding out money into the palm of his hand, not even looking at Tim yet. When Tony finally raised his eyes, he seemed surprised.

"You're not the pizza guy."

"Really? Where'd you get that idea from?" McGee sarcastically questioned before pushing past Tony and letting himself into the apartment.

Tony stood there for a moment, still in a stupor before finally gathering himself enough to shut the door and face Tim in the middle of his living room. He was awkwardly pacing…no, more like dancing around, trying to find something to bring attention to. Giving up, Tim began speaking.

"So you ordered pizza."

"Yeah, and…?" Tony trailed off, shoving the wad of cash back into his pocket.

"Nothing, nothing," Tim shrugged it off. He pointed in the direction of the flat screen, "I see you got a new T.V."

"The old one got busted by the sniper. What are you doing here?"

McGee stuttered, "W-well, I just thought we could, you know."

"No, I don't. That's why I'm asking."

"Hang out. Go out for a drink. Do something."

Tony sighed, "Look, Tim. It's been a really long day, and does it look like I'm ready to go out to a bar?" He indicated his attire, a stark contrast to the suit McGee was still donning.

In truth, it had been a long day and this probably wasn't the best time to drop by. They were tracking a Navy Officer's daughter who had been kidnapped by a jealous coworker who was passed up for promotion. It ended happily, with the girl returned and the bad guy in handcuffs, but it didn't make the process any easier- especially with a man, or woman in this case, down.

"Right. Well, I can go I'm intruding," McGee offered, gesturing over his shoulder to the door.

Tony shrugged, "You can stay if you want. Pizza's on it's way. I just wasn't expecting you."

"Like I said, just dropping by," he repeated with a nervous laugh, rocking on his heels. Maybe it was the absence of conviction and self assurance or Tony's experience with reading suspects, but he saw right through Tim's lie.

"You never drop by, McGoo. In fact, we rarely go out for drinks anymore."

"Hadn't noticed."

The tension in the air was growing by the minute. Tim knew he was caught. And he knew that Tony was fully aware of that fact.

"Why are you checking in on me?"

"I'm not!" Tim insisted.

"You're lying," Tony accused, crossing his arms and raising his eyebrows.

McGee sighed, wondering if it was too late to leave Tony alone to his pizza and movie and pretend like this conversation never began. As much as his instincts were screaming to run, Tim couldn't bring himself to do it. In fact, he found himself more confident now than he had in a really long time.

"Okay, I'm lying."

"Well I knew _that_, Probie," Tony managed a laugh.

"This isn't something to be laughed at," Tim deadpanned. His clown of a coworker immediately stopped, starring at McGee with a shocked expression. "You're falling apart."

"I am not falling apart," Tony deflected, eyes narrowing.

"You've stopped flirting with other women. There was mention of you going to a church support group that one time. And I can clearly see-" Tim looked over pointedly to the fishbowl next to the piano. "-that there's a new addition to the family. I wonder what this one's name is. Does Kate like her new roommate?"

"Drop it, Tim."

"I miss her too, Tony," McGee said, heading towards the door. "She was one of my best friends. But Ziva's gone now, and you're gonna keep on ordering your pizza, watching a movie, and hoping that she's gonna walk through that door and join you on your couch when she isn't."

Tim wasn't prepared for the way Tony's voice cracked, "Stop talking like she's dead."

He opened up the door and was about to close it when he added without meeting his friend's eyes, "You really loved her, didn't you?"

McGee finally looked up in time to see Tony standing there in the middle of his living room looking so incredibly _lost. _As Tim shut the door, he could hear a hallow sob echo out in the hallway.

He didn't make it to the elevator before he found a tear rolling down his cheek too.


	3. Shalom

**Author's Note:**

**Thanks so much for all of the response! I really appreciate it and hope you enjoy this next one- which I cannot even begin to express how hard this was to write!**

-C

_Prompt from bookdiva: The phone call between Ziva and Gibbs._

"Hi Ziver," Gibbs began with a long exasperation of breath. Even with many years of facing combat, both emotional and physical, two words of a conversation that had the potential of going nowhere was making his heart pound painfully in his chest.

He heard the shaky breath that preceded the response, "Gibbs."

"You gonna return my agent anytime soon?" He half-joked, flicking at the beer bottle on the table.

Ziva managed a weak laugh, "I should have known you would have figured it out."

"Tends to happen when you're a parent."

He could practically hear the sad smile on the other end of the line. It was no secret that Gibbs treated all of his agents like they were his children, but hearing him admit it aloud was a whole nother matter.

"I am sorry. You once told me that sometimes people do the wrong things for the right reasons. I cannot help but feel as if I am not doing the right thing for the right reasons. Whether it is the wrong thing or the right thing…Gibbs…I need to do this."

"Do you want this?"

"I want to change. I _need _to change. We were told as children that our dreams would come true if we thought about them every night and that is something my father ripped away. He chose this life for me, Gibbs. I cannot live the life he laid out for me anymore. I do not want to leave this part of my life behind, but it is what needs to happen."

Gibbs swallowed, "Understood."

"Eli might have been my father but he was not the man I would like to call 'Dad'. I am doing this for you Gibbs. You told me to listen to my heart, and I am."

"You don't have to justify yourself with me, Ziver," he told her gently.

"That is not entirely true," she whispered as her voice cracked.

"Then why are you calling?"

There was silence, almost as if the line had went dead. Each could hear the other's breathing but no words were said. Tony hadn't been right. Gibbs _was _talking to her.

"I cannot leave without saying good-bye."

A small, melancholy smile swept across Gibbs's face. "When Kelly was young she used to hang pictures of different cities all up on her wall, right above her bed. She would say that she was going to visit all of these places but never once said that she wouldn't be coming back. Shannon asked her if she planned on visiting us on her travels, and Kelly just looked at her with these huge eyes. She said, 'Daddy always comes back, because this is home.'"

An audible sound came from the other end of the line, and Gibbs found himself at the brink of losing control. He couldn't lose another daughter.

"You always have a family and a home here, Ziva. At the end of the day, just remember that."

"And you will be waiting after all I have done?"

"Always."

A void of silence filled the air, although much shorter this time before Ziva spoke, "Shalom Gibbs. For now."

"Night, kid. For now."

"


	4. It was Hers

**Author's Note:**

**So for my first NCIS fanfiction, I think this is going pretty good. I love all the response and reviews and favorites and follows. You guys make my day! Sorry this is so late. On another note, please send me prompts! I have one more after this, and will quickly run out of ideas! Leave me a review or PM! Remember- any season, any time frame, any character.**

**-C**

_Prompt from bookdiva: Tony's thoughts during a support group meeting._

Here he was again, for maybe the fifth time in the past few months. Sometimes cases got in the way, but he did his best to make the weekly meetings. He ambled into the atrium centered around a mosaic cross in the floor. Tony headed for the table with refreshments to pour himself a mediocre cup of murky water that passed for coffee and a freshly baked sugar cookie donated from Mrs. Charles.

He popped the treat into his mouth, nodding a greeting towards Reverend Miller. The other members of this male support group were pulling up the folding metal chairs to surround the center of the cross. The heart of Jesus or whatever. Tony wasn't really all that religious. However, maybe coming here changed that a little.

"Please help yourself to refreshments everybody, we're going to start in a few minutes," Reverend Miller called above the quiet little chatter.

Tony mostly kept to himself, but soon found himself accompanied by a young man in his twenties. His name was Jeff? No, Jeremy.

They had met a couple weeks ago. The red-head grew up in an abusive home, lived with his older sister until a few years ago when she overdosed on pain medication. At least that's the story passed with the other men of the group. From being an investigator more than anything else, Tony knew that people lied. All the time.

"Now that we're all here," Reverend Miller began as he took a seat across the circle from Tony, "we would like to welcome a new member to the group. Say hello to Lionel, everybody."

"Hi, Lionel," came the unenthusiastic reply. It barely passed through Tony's lips. He was lost in his own world. Coming here did that to him.

"Would you like to start tonight's discussion?"

Lionel, an elderly man with a severe limp struggled to stand. He rasped, "My wife passed away two weeks, three days, and six hours ago. I can't seem to stop turning to say something to her. And then, I remember. She's not there anymore, and never will be."

The man, fresh with grief, broke down into sobs and collapsed in his chair. Another elderly man, the one that must have brought him, patted his shoulders.

"Let us pray for Lionel and his wife, everybody," The Reverend folding his hands and began uttering an inaudible plea. Some of the people around the circle copied. Tony felt obliged to do the same, although he could not find the words that would justify it. After all, he knew the feeling.

_I wonder if she ever will come back…_

"Why don't we center tonight's meeting on dealing with grief, and how to avoid ourselves being consumed by it? Harold, can you begin with your son?"

Harold Lazars was one of the few men Tony liked interacting with. One could even call them slightly-more-than-acquaintances-but-not-to-the-level-of-friend. It was more than common interests and an affinity for movie references, but they both worked heavily with the military. Almost two years ago, his son, James, was killed in action while overseas.

"James was a natural born patriot. He was playing soldier from the day he could walk…"

_She technically is a citizen now. Her home is here. _

"…it's something that never left my boy as he grew up."

_She can't just leave and expect me to walk away. I care about her too much._

"And I remember waving him off on his first tour. God was he beaming like a little boy playing soldier again."

_The first time she waltzed into the bullpen…well, more like crept. And then asked, 'Are you having phone sex?' Creepy, but still somehow captivating._

"It was the last time I ever saw him."

_She was laughing. But there were tears in her eyes. Was it as hard for her as it was for me?_

"It didn't really feel real. That is until an officer handed me his folded flag, and suddenly it all came rushing to me."

_Holding the necklace on the plane. She gave me back the necklace. She gave me a piece of _her _to take with me._

"My wife and I drifted apart. We had different ways of dealing with the pain."

_Abby was wearing her head wrap. Gibbs has been silent. As always. McGee? Doesn't he think I notice him staring at the empty desk…?_

_…Do they notice how much I stare at it?_

"She would look at photos and not stop talking about him."

_He had been poisoned, shot, hell even had the bubonic plague. So why did this hurt more than anything else? Why couldn't he picture her face without feeling searing pain?_

"She came to terms with it easier than I."

_Why am I still feeling this way?_

"It took me a while to figure out that what I was feeling was complete and utter-"

_Heartbreak. _

"I couldn't even say his name."

_Say it. You can do it. _

As he annunciated each sentence in his head, tears threatened to break.

_One word. Two syllables. Four letters. Two consonants. Two vowels. One simple, tiny word._

_Why couldn't he just say this one word? It was _her _name._

_What's in a name? What made it so damn difficult?_

And finally the inevitable tear danced down his cheek.

_It was Ziva's._


	5. A Lot to Talk About

**Author's Note:**

**Thanks again so much for the reviews everybody! I'd just like to address a comment I received not too long ago regarding the variation in the prompts. This person said that they were all about Ziva so far, and that this turned the off from the story. Reminder- everything I write are prompts sent to me. If you want to see something different, then send me a prompt! :)**

**-C**

_Prompt from SOPPNATION: __Tony goes to Gibbs' basement and is talking to Gibbs about his feelings for Ziva and unbeknownst to Tony, Ziva is there listening_

"I cannot help but think that if I moved just a moment earlier, that woman would still be alive," Ziva grumbled for about the fifth time that night. She let her head fall against the concrete wall just below the stairs in frustration.

"It's part of the job, Ziver," Gibbs reminded her for also about the fifth time as he worked on the boat and sipped bourbon.

"Yeah? Well it shrinks." She anxiously tapped her hand against her thigh, regretting not accepting the drink.

Gibbs laughed, "Stinks, Ziva."

"I hate American idioms!" She exclaimed.

The ex-marine continued to grin at her for a moment more and then turned serious again. "We've lost civilians on the job before."

"What if it was not Mrs. Renolds? It could have been you, or McGee, or T-"she swallowed. "Tony."

"And that's why you're here. Because you're afraid that your reaction for one case is going to define the rest of them," he murmured into his tool as he sanded the wood.

Ziva struggle to find the words. "I-"

"Boss?" A new voice called as he trotted down the stairs.

Tell of the devil.

_Now I know that does not sound right, _Ziva reprimanded herself.

"DiNozzo."

"I can't find Ziva. I went to her apartment but she wasn't there. I think this case is affecting her more than she let on," Tony rambled, out of breath. He was facing Gibbs, and didn't see Ziva still sitting silently in the corner.

"She can take care of-" Gibbs began to say, raising his arm to gesture to the corner, but Tony carried on.

"Don't give me the 'she can take care of herself' bullcrap. She might be an ex-Mossad ninja who could kill you with a paperclip but Ziva's still Ziva. I'm worried about her."

"That so?"

Ziva didn't know what possessed her to remain silent, but she did. Tony gave Gibbs an incredulous look and ran a hand over his face. "You've got to know by now that I care about her."

It was Gibbs's turn to give him a look screaming _Really? _"Ya think, DiNozzo?"

Tony sighed and then asked, "Got any beer?"

"You might want to hold off on the alcohol until you two talk," Gibbs said, setting his tools down and ascending the stairs rapidly.

As if suddenly sensing the other presence in the room, Tony slowly turned to see Ziva smiling lightly in the dark.

"There you are," Tony half-laughed. He ran a hand through his hair nervously, "so, you been here a while?"

"Gibbs was right. We do have a lot to talk about," Ziva grinned. She rose from her seat and embraced him tightly, the anxiety of that day's operation dissipating as she melted in his arms.

"


	6. Thoughts Part One

**Author's Note:**

**Please keep the prompts coming! I'm quickly running short…**

**-C**

_Prompt from Bamie02: __the teams thoughts on Bishop and her taking over Ziva's desk_

(I'm going to split this up into two parts).

Abby

Abby Scuito loved her job. Like, one who enjoyed working over time- of course if it didn't involve any animals or people getting hurt. On second thought, almost all of their cases involved people or animals getting hurt. So she didn't like working over time. But she would, if you know, it included movie nights or something like that.

Despite all that, why wouldn't she love her job? She had her caf-pow, Bert to cuddle with, and lots of equipment in her lab to use. The best part was all the amazing people she got to work with. Not even the bad could make her ever regret knowing the agents who came in and out of this building.

She missed Kate. She missed Mike Franks. It made her heart ache sometimes. But she would go through that same heart ache a hundred times over if it meant not meeting them in the first place.

And of course, Abby missed Ziva. She would wear her headdress as a scarf, dancing around the lab with it and sometimes talking as if the Israeli could hear her. It wouldn't bring her back, but it was satisfying in a way. Even though Ziva's absence put a huge hole in the team dynamic for a while, it was filled.

Not replace. Their circle wouldn't be the same. But at least they had more to add to it. Bishop brought much to the team, and although Abby would continue to skip around her lab fingering Ziva's scarf, smile sadly as she gazed at Kate's drawings, and remember interesting nights at the bar with Mike Franks, but they had all passed through a desk in the bullpen before. Abby came to love every single one of them. Why would Bishop be any different?

McGee

Change was a funny thing. Really, it was. Life does a meager job of preparing you for it, because it was kinda impossible to. McGee remembered when his parents got divorced. He thought that was the biggest change of his life. Well, little did teenage Timothy know. In this business, everything could change in a day.

It sure did when one moment they were welcoming Mike Franks back. And then burying him the next.

Even an hour.

He's walking into the ballroom with his insanely beautiful girlfriend. And then sitting in a hospital waiting room thinking about how to deal with her condition.

In a minute.

We have to get out of the building. Then boom.

Especially in a second.

He hears laughter and joking on the coms. Then a single shot. Then the eerie silence of Gibbs and Tony when they realized that Kate was lying at their feet with a hole in her head.

Thanks Cobb, Parsa, Dearing, and Ari. And every other bad guy they've ever come across.

Maybe he was being a little cynical, but it was the truth. In this job, you never knew. There was too much left to chance to think otherwise.

He never expected this. He never would have guess Ziva would duck out like that. McGee felt strangely betrayed, although he wished for the best for Ziva. So change had struck them once again. And instead of the Israeli, he looked at Bishop everyday.

McGee didn't resent the NSA analyst. She was a good addition to the team. If anything, he was bitter. Ziva, being as deadly as she was, gave the impression of invincibility. With her watching Tony's back, nothing bad would ever happen. And with Gibbs with himself…why would he expect for any of them to leave soon?

He didn't. Least of all by choice. So he was bitter that once again this job managed to catch him by surprise. There were those surprises and then surprises like Ellie Bishop. She made a great addition to the team, and Tim had high hopes for her.

So change was happening to McGee once again. Not all of it was going to be bad.

"


	7. Thoughts Part Two

**Author's Note:**

**Hey all! Hope you like part two! I love all the responses, so please keep the prompts coming before I run out! See if you can catch my Lord of the Rings reference…;)**

**-C**

_Prompt from Bamie02: __the teams thoughts on Bishop and her taking over Ziva's desk_

(Part Two)

Gibbs

War.

It was a peculiar thing.

You train and you train and you train. Mental. Physical. One would think that by the time they leave American soil they would be ready for it. They suit up. Lace the boots. Check the weapon. Secure the belt. Check the weapon again. That first step into battle, there is no turning back. And suddenly, all that training means nothing. It's you. Your enemies. And the fight for who lives and who dies.

In the grand scheme of the universe war was the perfect, ironic metaphor for life.

No amount of training, preparation, or the soft words of consolation murmured by a love one could ever make-up for putting on your coat and stepping out the door. It was a dangerous business. You have all the tools. You have wit, intelligence. Hopefully family.

And then one day it can just all be gone. Some days the world just wins out. But that was just life. And no matter what, life carried on.

Shannon and Kelly had left him already, but he had to carry on. He had to itch to reach for a hand that wasn't there and walk into his daughter's room to kiss her good night and suddenly remember the sheets weren't occupied anymore. Her favorite stuffed bear wouldn't be cuddled anymore.

People would move into that house and not even realize the memories that it held. And then the family after that. And after that. The world kept spinning no matter how many times you wished you could stop it.

In the case of Leroy Jethro Gibbs, he wished it would stop several times.

And it didn't.

So when his house stopped becoming a home, NCIS had kinda taken the place of it. At least he was used to the pain. The occasional empty desk. Like an occasional empty room. Hell of a thing to get used to.

When he found his solidified family of agents, Gibbs cursed himself for being naïve enough to think that they would stay that way. Whether it was a thought or a desperate grip of normalcy, he didn't know.

Eight solid years they had been a tight knit unit. And then it all just started crumbling. The loss of one soldier would leave a gap; the mission would collapse.

This team was different. So very different.

But Gibbs wouldn't be around to see it change forever. Someday he would leave. Someday DiNozzo and McGee. Ziva already did.

And then there would be a whole new team of agents filling their shoes, sitting in their desks.

That was just life.

Tony

When you think you've become a master of all, somebody who _knows_, something always replaces those feelings. Definitive ones. Redefining ones.

He first thought he knew jealousy in high school, watching his best friend going out with his ex-girlfriend. Then when he found out that Wendy had remarried. But all of those felt so childish in the prospect of things.

Tony was envious of Bishop. How she occupied her desk. How she became the newest probie. It felt so wrong.

But it was more than a desk or a chair or a title. Bishop was innocent. Her heart wasn't marred by years of warfare, inner and outer.

One can only take so many bullets. So many bunches. And it's tough to hang up your gun when it's the only thing you've ever known. That's what drove Ziva away from them all. Heartbreak.

He only hoped that Bishop got out of the game half as unscarred as himself.

"


	8. Movie Night

**Author's Note:**

**Hey all. So, I'm seriously running low on prompts. Like, this is the last one I have low. Please send me anything you want to see, even if you already have!**

**-C**

_Prompt from SkylarFiari: The team has a fun night out_

"What movie are we watching?" Abby inquired with a beaming smile and dug her hand into the popcorn bowl again.

"Only the best for you, Abs. A tale of danger, a tale of cops, and of a rocking Irish soundtrack!" Tony answered enthusiastically, spinning in a circle and attempting to reenact something that vaguely resembled an Irish dance.

Ziva laughed at him and stole the popcorn bowl from within Abby's reach on the island counter and brought it over to the coffee table, where McGee was already opening up the pizza box.

"By that he probably means _The Departed_," the techie added around a mouthful of pepperoni goodness.

"And the McProbie is a McMovie too!" Tony clapped mockingly. He grabbed a case a beers before dimming the lights in the kitchen and moving into the family room with the rest of the team.

"No, Tony, I've just been working with you for too long." McGee flashed him a toothless smile.

"Ah, the hurt!" Tony exclaimed and clutched a hand over his heart.

"Boys, play nice," Abby chastised. "We don't get to do this often enough. I vote for movie nights at Tony's!" She raised a hand as if she were in school again to emphasize.

"I am still wondering…what is _The Departed_?" Ziva inquired, staring at the blank television screen.

"Well," Tony started. He let out a sigh as he sank into the couch between Ziva and Abby. "It stars Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio-"

"I know that one! He is the handsome one from the boat that sinks, yes?" she interjects, waving her hands enthusiastically.

Tony couldn't help but groan. "It's a ship, Ziva. A ship. And yes, it's the guy from _Titanic_."

"Basically DiCaprio goes undercover in the Irish mob and drama happens. Can we play the movie now?" McGee complained, popping open a beer and handing it to Abby.

"Don't steal my mojo, probie!"

He rambles on to Ziva for the next fifteen minutes about how good the movie is, and about how it's one of the best performances from all of the leading actors- a fact that both Abby and McGee find ironic since they could just begin the actual film. It was classic Tony DiNozzo.

At last they begin the movie, eyes searching for the popcorn bowl, beer bottles clinking against the coasters, and napkins crinkling from greasy hands. It had been a long time since they were able to get out as a team.

And it couldn't have been more perfect.

"


	9. Skydiving

**Author's Note:**

**Hey everybody! So, I finally have a couple more prompts, but I always need more! Thanks so much for all the support!**

**-C**

_Prompt from ncisnewbie: The team goes out to brunch with Delilah after "Bulletproof"_

"You went all that way, and he didn't even go skydiving with you?" Bishop estioned incredulously.

"Hey, we all know Delilah kicks more butt than McGeek. He so chickened out," Tony added.

McGee dropped his silverware indignantly. "I did not chicken out, Tony."

All heads turned toward Delilah, who was eying McGee suspiciously over the rim of her coffee mug. The table of nine, including Ducky, Jimmy, Brina, Abby, Tony, Bishop, and Gibbs went silent, watching the couple.

"I did not!"

"Oh you totally chickened out on me, Tim," Delilah laughed, setting down her mug.

"While skydiving, the wind traveling past your ears is well over a hundred miles per hour. Take comfort that you wouldn't be able to hear him scream on the way down, Delilah, no matter how loud he will be," Ducky recited.

Everybody laughed, and ordered another round of coffee for the group.

"You don't have anything to worry about. Skydiving's safer than driving a car," Jimmy inputted. He was becoming more and more like the good doctor everyday with his constant ramblings and spontaneous facts.

"I always thought skydiving would be really cool," Brina jumped in.

Jimmy's face visibly paled.

"You walked into that one, Palmer," Gibbs gestured towards the assistant medical examiner's wife.

"You're all a bunch a wimps!" Abby grinned. "Skydiving is _not _that scary."

"Coming from the one who sleeps in a coffin," DiNozzo added.

Various team members added:

"And wears dog collars."

"And carries around a funeral umbrella."

Bishop seemed to choke a little on her egg sandwich. "Wait, you sleep in a coffin?"

Everybody laughed at the face that Bishop was making. She had quite a lot to learn.

"


	10. Surprises

_Prompt from countrygirl1986: Abby and Ziva find out they are pregnant at the same time._

Ziva took a deep breath. She could do this. The news did come as a shock, but it was nothing she couldn't handle, right? But the ex-Mossad operative needed to tell somebody. So she snatched her car keys and went to open the door, surprised at who she found there.

"Abby," she said with surprise.

The forensic scientist, who was in mid-knock, seemed startled that Ziva opened the door so quickly.

"Hi Ziva," the goth greeted, but somewhat unenthusiastically. Ziva raised an eyebrow, curious. It just wasn't in Abby's nature.

"I was just on my way to come see you," the Israeli said as she let Abby into the apartment.

"I have something to tell you, but I'm not sure how you're going to react…" Abby drifted off, settling into the couch.

"What is wrong?"

"I don't know if anything's _wrong_," Abby emphasized. "It's just a surprise is all. I mean, a really nice surprise but still…a surprise."

"Well?"

Abby took a deep breath, a broad grin stretching across her face. "I'm pregnant."

"Wow. That is quite the coincidence."

"Coincidence? Do you mean…?"

"Yes. I am pregnant as well."

Abby clapped enthusiastically. "Yay! Congratulations, Ziva!" She brought her friend into a tight hug.

"Congratulations to you as well, Abby."


End file.
